A former National Commissioner of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Mustapha Lecky, has criticised calls for real-time electronic transmission of election results, saying Nigeria is not yet prepared for such a system. Speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today, Lecky argued that both the legal framework and technical capacity needed for instant result transmission are still lacking.

His comments come amid public reactions to the Senate’s decision to reject an amendment to Section 60 of the Electoral Act, 2022, which would have made real-time transmission of results mandatory. According to Lecky, the debate overlooks the reality that Nigeria still operates a manual voting system, making instant electronic uploads impractical under current conditions.

Lecky explained that election results must first be manually counted at polling units in the presence of party agents before any form of upload can occur. He stressed that this process already promotes transparency, as ballots are counted openly and documented on official result sheets signed by all representatives before submission.

He further warned that pushing for nationwide real-time transmission without adequate infrastructure could expose elections to technical failures and cyber risks, especially in areas with weak internet access. While dismissing the calls as premature, Lecky encouraged INEC to strengthen existing tools such as the IReV Portal and BVAS, noting that improving what is already in place would better serve Nigeria’s evolving democracy.